


Cheat

by VerityGrahams



Series: The Houses Competition - Year Six - Gryffindor [5]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Drinking Games, F/M, Games, Humor, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2020-11-30
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:35:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,070
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27802405
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VerityGrahams/pseuds/VerityGrahams
Summary: Harry, Ginny, Hermione and Ron have a Muggle Games night. Ron and Ginny are always on the same team and they are insanely competitive, and always win. Harry and Hermione are sick of losing, and they have decided to take control.
Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger & Harry Potter & Ginny Weasley & Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Series: The Houses Competition - Year Six - Gryffindor [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1735684
Comments: 1
Kudos: 14





	Cheat

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: I do not own Harry Potter
> 
> Written for The Houses Competition
> 
> House: Gryffindor
> 
> Position: Potions
> 
> Category: Standard
> 
> Prompt: [Action] Teaching a Muggle game to a wizard
> 
> Wordcount: 2069
> 
> Note: You don't NEED to know the below, but some are interesting and fun, one is a note on characterisation choices already in the narrative.
> 
> 1\. Riffling is a popular form of shuffling.
> 
> 2\. 'True Magik' is a wizarding drinking game, it was invented by Charlie Weasley. It's spelt magik because Percy Weasley wrote down the rules when intoxicated.
> 
> 3\. Ron is able to beat Hermione at scrabble due to strategy not an OOC suggestion he is smarter than her.

Hermione rushed around the small apartment that she and Ron lived in. They were expecting guests—Harry and Ginny to be precise—because it was games night. This happened once a week; every single Friday, they got together after work, with glasses of wine and a variety of games.

It was Harry and Hermione vs Ginny and Ron, and the competition was intense, mainly because Ron and Ginny worked so well together that they nearly always won. What made it worse was that they were such bad winners. Last week, Ron and Ginny had bragged that they were unbeatable in _any_ game. Well, Harry and Hermione had been meeting all week secretly; Ron and Ginny's winning streak was coming to an end.

Ginny and Harry arrived at seven-thirty, and whilst they all exchanged pleasantries, there was already tension in the air. This is what happened when they played games with Ron and Ginny Weasley; they were the most competitive people Hermione had ever played a board game with.

"Hermione and I have been thinking," Harry said. "We've played a lot of magical games, and we wondered if that winning streak you're on—"

"—It's not a streak, Harry. Streaks end." Ron smirked.

"Whatever, Ron. The point is, we decided to even the playing field. You said you could beat us at _any_ game, so we decided that today was going to be a Muggle game night."

"It won't make any difference. We've got this, right, Ron?" Ginny high-fived her brother with a smile.

"It's already in the bag. Hermione tried to get me to play a Muggle game called Scrabble; I still kicked her ass." Ron started walking to the living room, where there was a stack of games waiting.

Harry took a seat on the beige sofa. "Same rules as always: a win for Hermione or me is a point for our team, a win for Ginny or Ron goes to their team?"

"Yes, Harry. I forgot you and Hermione could get points, and it's been _so_ long!" Ginny laughed as she sat next to Ron.

"I've got water; we need to stay hydrated." Ron handed Ginny a tall glass of water.

"Get caffeine to stay alert too," Ginny said.

"It's okay, Ron; Harry and I are fine. _We_ don't need drinks," Hermione said.

Ron made his way to the kitchen, shouting, "It's every man for himself."

Soon they all sat down, and Hermione pulled the first game forward. It was a tall, slim box, and when they opened it, it was filled with oblong bricks. Ron picked up a wooden brick, inspecting it.

"What do they do?" Ginny asked.

Harry smiled. They were clueless, which was exactly what he was counting on. "It's Jenga." Harry started pulling the bricks towards them and stacking them three at a time, each in opposite directions. "You need to remove a brick without it falling over, and place it on the top."

Ginny laughed. "Easy!"

"Are you sure?" Hermione asked. "He doesn't exactly have a steady hand."

The game of Jenga didn't last very long. Every time someone knocked it over, they started again, with the loser of the last game eliminated. Ron had been the first one knocked out and immediately declared the game stupid.

"It makes no sense, what's the point?" Ron paced the room agitatedly when Hermione was declared the winner.

"Just 'cause I have a steady hand, and you don't. Also, you don't think logically about which brick to take. You took them all from one side; it was obviously heavier on one side than the other."

"Our house manages to stay up by itself, and that's really wonky!" Ginny exclaimed, just as irritated by her brother.

"I highly suspect it's held up by magic; the structural integrity of the Burrow is questionable at best!" Harry laughed.

"Whatever. What's next?" Ron finally sat on the couch and took a long swig of water.

"Scrabble. Have you ever played, Ginny?" Hermione asked.

"It's easy," Ron said. "You use the letters to make words on the board; they have to interconnect." He then leaned into his sister, whispering in his ear. " _Triple word scores._ "

"Highest scorer gets the point for their team," Harry said as he took the little notebook and pencil from the box.

Hermione placed the boardgame down, and they each picked seven letters. This game had lasted a lot longer, and Harry and Hermione did alright. Ron and Ginny, however, managed to rake in so many points, simply from strategically placing words on almost every 'triple word score'. They also seemed to have all the highest scoring letters.

"Back on track, Ron." Ginny was stretching and squatting beside the couch, almost as if she were about to be asked to run a marathon. "What's next? Twister? Harry and I love playing Twister." She winked at Harry.

Hermione had planned on Pictionary, but she felt that she and Harry were more likely to win at Twister. Ron and Ginny seemed almost to share a brain in games like Pictionary, so Twister it was. It had been a huge mistake. Hermione had been knocked out right away; she highly suspected that Ron tripped her up. Harry did well, but Ginny would always choose a spot that distracted him, and eventually, he was knocked out, too.

"Harry, what game next? If they win the next one, there is no point in carrying on!" Hermione whispered.

"Rummikub." Harry smiled. "I can easily beat them at Rummikub."

And Harry did beat them.

Ron had started strong, but once the game got going, no one could stop Harry from shuffling the tiles around seamlessly, and he soon got rid of his tiles. Finally, they were even. They had one more game, and that would be the tie-breaker. That's when Hermione pulled out a box of cards.

"Cards aren't exclusively Muggle," Ginny said.

Hermione smiled. "But this card game is one you will never have played. It's called 'Cheat'."

"Cheat?" Ron asked.

"Yes, the point is not to get caught cheating." Hermione shuffled the cards, expertly riffling them. "I will deal with all the cards equally between the four of us—"

"—It sounds like Exploding Snap, just without the explosion."

"It's not. We then each take it in turns, putting down at least two cards. You have to tell the room which cards you have put down, but you can lie, hence the name 'Cheat'."

"That's easy and boring." Ron started picking up his cards.

"Maybe, but you don't have a choice of which number you put down. You have to put down either the same number as the previous person, a number above or a number below. This means sometimes you'll be forced to cheat," Harry said.

"So…"

"Anyone can call anyone out as a cheater. When that happens, you have to turn over the cards, and if you did cheat, you have to pick up all the cards. If the person saying 'cheat' is wrong, they have to pick up the cards." Hermione dealt the last few cards, and then picking up her own, she fanned them in her hand, arranging them by number.

"I'll start," said Harry. "Three 'two's." He placed the cards on the table.

Ron frowned, his attention focused on his cards. "So, if I think it's a lie, I just say cheat?"

Hermione nodded and then glanced at Harry, who smiled.

"Then, cheat. I know you are, I can tell. Pick them up."

Harry turned over the cards revealing three 'two's. "Unlucky."

Ron turned them back over and shuffled through his cards. "Two 'three's," he said, placing two cards on the table.

"Ron, you have to pick up the 'two's. You called 'cheat', but you were wrong."

"What's the point in that? Only the cheaters have to pick up, right?" Ginny said, coming to her brother's defence.

"Yeah, if you're caught cheating you have to pick up." Ron crossed his arms, glaring at his friends.

"We also said, ' _If the person saying 'cheat' is wrong, they have to pick up the cards'_. Pick them up, Ron." Hermione had a smile fixed on her face. She could almost taste their victory.

Ron huffed as he scooped up the cards, then threw down his two cards. He looked at Harry and Hermione. "Are you going to cheat me?" he asked.

Harry shrugged. "Not yet. I'm going to wait until there's a nice juicy pile for you to pick up. I can't wait to see the look on your faces when you realise you don't stand a chance!"

"Fat chance, Potter. I will put down four 'five's." Ginny slammed the cards on top of Ron's.

"You can't do that, Gin," Harry said.

"Why not?" she asked. "If you want to cheat me, go ahead. I can't wait for you to pick them all up."

"Because Ron put down 'three's, you have to put down 'three's, 'four's, or 'two's," Hermione said as she took a sip of clear white wine.

"But I can't! I don't have those numbers, which means I would be forced to cheat and have to pick up! I would rather _not_ cheat."

"It's called 'cheat' for a reason. That rule is to force people into cheating; it's no fun if no one lies!" Harry laughed.

Ginny picked up her cards and shuffled through her hand. "And I can't just put one down?"

"Nope." Harry smiled. "At least two."

Ginny picked up two random cards. "Two, 'two's."

"Cheat." Hermione did her best to contain her laughter. Ginny's face was perfect; she was furious.

"So, no leniency while we learn the rules?" She picked up the growing pile and added them to her hand.

"When you taught us how to play _True Magik,_ there was no leniency. When Hermione drank her beer too quickly, she got slimed."

"We explained when you finish a beer, and you have to shout out three famous wizard names!" Ron said, glaring back at Harry.

"She was hammered; at least Ginny has her faculties!" Harry shouted.

"We told Ginny the rules," Hermione said. "Now, you're not covered in slime, Gin, you just have a few extra cards, so suck it up and move on."

The game went on and on like this for hours. Occasionally, Ron or Ginny would get lucky and cause Harry or Hermione to pick up a stack of cards, but overall, the Weasley siblings were against the ropes.

"Three 'Aces'," Hermione said. She smiled gleefully as she held up both hands, signalling that she had no cards left. "We win!"

"Cheat!" Ron shouted. "Cheat, and you can pick up the pile!"

Harry started laughing as he turned over the cards to reveal three aces. "It's always smart to make sure you don't cheat on your last go."

"These games are stupid," Ginny said as she jumped up from the sofa. "You only won because you are far more familiar with the Muggle games than we are."

"That's kind of the point we were making, Gin," Harry said. "Every game night, we play your family's weird games, like True Magik or Hodgesplodge. We don't know anything about those games, so we don't stand a chance."

Ron's arms were crossed. "I want a rematch. Next week, we can play Hodgesplodge, True Magik, Jenga, and Cheat. Ginny and I will prove that we can beat you on a level playing field, deal?"

Ron held out a hand, his face fixed in a glare as he looked at Harry.

"Ron, do you think you take games night a little too seriously?" Hermione asked.

"What's the point in playing if it's not to win?" Ginny asked. She looked at Hermione as though she had sprouted a third head.

"I can understand that," said Harry, who seemed almost as competitive as his best friend and girlfriend. "Let's make it a little more interesting. If Hermione and I win, you two have to go to work with charmed T-Shirts that say 'We Are Losers', and they have to be on show!"

"Harry… wait!" Hermione pleaded.

"Fine," said Ron, "but if we win, Harry has to go to work in a T-Shirt that says 'I'm the Boy Who Loses' and Hermione … 'Dumbest Witch of her Age'."

"Harry, don't!"

"Deal!"

Harry and Ron shook hands. Hermione realised that she would need to spend every spare moment revising and studying the rules for True Magik and maybe build up her alcohol tolerance.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading, please comment or kudos :)


End file.
